Raise the Bar | Open Mic (Feat. Caleb Parkin + paz huxley)

Name: Raise the Bar | Open Mic (Feat. Caleb Parkin + paz huxley)
Start: 2025-01-21T19:30:00+00:00
Location: The Orchard Coffee & Co.

Schedule

Tue, 21 Jan, 2025 at 07:30 pm

UTC+00:00

Location

The Orchard Coffee & Co. | Bristol, EN

Raise the Bar returns with another dynamic night of live poetry at the lovely Orchard Coffee & Co, with guest performances from Caleb Parkin and paz huxley!
Our open mics are welcome to poets, rappers, storytellers, lyricists, songwriters, and wordsmiths of all styles and levels of experience, whether it's your first time or your 100th. If you'd like to sign up to perform, or just sit back with a beverage and listen to some of the city's finest wordsmiths, this is the evening for you.
Part of Raise the Bar's 2025 Artist Development Programme, supported by Arts Council England.
16+ accompanied. Wheelchair accessible. Scroll down for further access and safeguarding information.
️🗓️ January 21st 2024
📍 The Orchard Coffee & Co, 20 Clouds Hill Rd, Bristol BS5 7LA
🕖 7:00pm doors | 7:30pm - 9:30pm show (including interval)
💷 PWYC £5 / £7 / £9 (£4 concessions)
OPEN MIC:
Our open mic and reserve list is now FULL. Please follow @rtbspokenword and join our mailing list (https://eepurl.com/gf-oAL) to be the first to know about future performance opportunities.
This will be an opportunity to try out new material in a safe, warm environment hosted by Raise the Bar's compere extraordinaire Saili Katebe.
A number of open mic spaces are reserved for writers from the global majority, the LGBTQ+ community, non-male performers, and poets in outlying areas of Bristol & the South West.
💥 FEATURE ACTS 💥
🔵 CALEB PARKIN 🔵
Caleb Parkin was Bristol City Poet 2020 – 22, with poems appearing in The Guardian, The Rialto and numerous other journals. He was a guest on BBC Radio 4’s Poetry Please and featured as Radio 3 Breakfast’s Poem of the Week.
His debut, This Fruiting Body (Nine Arches, 2021) was longlisted for the Laurel Prize. Mingle, his second collection, is out now and investigates toxicity, intoxication, and toxified ideals.
Caleb tutors extensively and joyfully, has an MSc in Creative Writing for Therapeutic Purposes, and is a PhD researcher at University of Exeter with RENEW Biodiversity – where he’s exploring human/animal communication through poetry.
🔵 PAZ HUXLEY 🔵
paz (they/them) is a british/chilean artist and facilitator based in Bristol represented by Rising Arts Agency. Specializing in illustration and poetry, they often explore themes like mythology/folklore, addiction, queer ecology and relationship anarchy. They are also a part of Sonder Spoken Word - A grassroots poetry workshop/event collective. They have been in some books, done some stuff, and are regularly called 'spunky' by people who haven't crossed paths so it's probably true.
⭐ RAISE THE BAR ⭐
The South West's leading live poetry night, running blockbuster spoken word events in Bristol and beyond since 2014.
‘From top to bottom, one of my all time favourite shows’ – Shane Koyczan
'One of the best poetry nights in the country' – Rafeef Ziadah
'Out-loud reactions are encouraged…shaking off traditional theatre etiquette' – Bristol 24/7
♿ ACCESSIBILITY / SAFEGUARDING ♿
Our events aim to be as safe, inclusive, accessible and welcoming as possible.
The venue has a wheelchair accessible entrance (via Cherry Orchard Lane) and accessible toilets.
If you have any particular access requirements or concerns, please email [email protected] in advance.
The event will include photography and videography.
🕖 SEATING / TIMINGS 🕢
Doors open at 7:00pm, and the bar will be open with a selection of drinks (alcoholic + non-alcoholic), cocktails and bar snacks.
The show begins at 7:30pm, so please arrive and be seated promptly. The event includes a 15 minute interval. We aim to finish at 9:30pm.
Please note, there is limited seating at The Orchard. Some attendees may need to sit on the steps, in the balcony area, or in a seat with restricted viewing, so please arrive promptly if you'd like to sit at a table / downstairs.
⚠️ CONTENT WARNING ⚠️
Poetry events include performers sharing personal accounts which you may relate to in some way. This may include content that is potentially upsetting or triggering. We provide a general content warning at the beginning of each event, and poets may choose to provide one for their own poem if necessary. Attendees are welcome to leave the venue at any time and return when they feel comfortable, but please try to do this before/after a poem.
🌈 SAFE SPACE 🌈
Raise the Bar has a zero tolerance policy towards hate, discrimination and abuse of any kind. Our staff team will work together to ensure the space is respectful and welcoming at all times. The open mic rules include 'no punching down' and 'no nudity', and a content warning will be provided at the start of the event.